Category Archives: Social Media

Search engine optimization is something that your business really has to get to grips with if it hasn’t already. But that’s probably something that you’ve heard before now. So, why is this the case? What makes SEO so important for businesses? The answers can be found below.

Most People Click the First Link on a Search Results Page

Most people who search for something on a search engine will click the first result on the page. This is something that probably won’t surprise you. We all use search engines and none of us like trawling through pages and pages of results. And if your business’s website doesn’t rank very high on results pages, your business miss out. You will miss out on visits to your website, and on sales as well. This is not something that any business owner wants, so you need to give it some thought. It could be the reason why you are not seeing many people visit your website. Using SEO to your advantage could change all that though.

You Need to Keep Up with the Competition

Every business has competitors, and all business owners want to keep up with them. If you don’t stay ahead of your rivals, then your business’s entire future could be put at risk. The chances are your rivals are using SEO. And you need to be using it if you want to keep up with them. If you fail to do this, it won’t be long before they are dominated the online market in your business sector. With the growth in online sales, this is not something that you can allow to happen if you are serious about your business and its future. And even if your rivals are not on top of SEO, this presents you with a chance to pull ahead of them.

SEO Gets Results

SEO techniques still work and manage to get results for businesses. This is the main reason why businesses should embrace them in order to grow their market share and dominate online custom. All case studies show that businesses do better online when they are using the right SEO techniques. Businesses that ignore these issues do not do as well, so the proof is there. And you can’t afford to ignore it if you want to find business success in the 21st century. If you don’t know what the best SEO techniques for your business are, get help from a company like Webstasy.

Search Engines Are Continuing to Grow

Anyone who thought that the influence of search engines would decrease over the years has already been proven wrong. Search engines are not going anywhere anytime soon. So, rather than ignoring them, you need to learn how to make them work for you and your business. It’s no good wishing you didn’t have to because this won’t have any impact on the reality of the situation. In the coming years, they will continue to grow. A huge amount of website visits originate on search engine results page. It’s the main way in which people discover new sites and businesses.

I hope these resources will guide you in your writing and blogging endeavors. Feel free to share these resources with fellow writers. And, should you ever have questions or would like to work with me, then you can CONTACT ME HERE.

I have a very exciting announcement coming up soon! Until then, enjoy the free resources! xx

Alex From Target: The Internet’s Newest Celebrity

Over the weekend, Buzzfeed posted an article about teenagers of the Internet making a picture go viral, causing Target worker Alex to become a trending topic on Twitter and other social media platforms. As of today, nearly 5pm in California, #alexfromtargetis still a top trending topic on Twitter. In fact, this kid’s Twitter account blew up overnight, and he now has 235K followers. People have even begun an Alex From Target fandom, writing fictional stories and making memes. Alex’s girlfriend gained masses of followers, not to mention death threats. Like, woah.

Image via Twitter.

How did it all start? With a tweeted picture of Alex from Target, taken by a teenage girl. Alex was apparently unaware of the photo being taken, and found out via social media that he had become an overnight sensation.According to Huffington Post, Target is thrilled about their employee’s new found fame, perhaps hoping that this will bring some good and much-needed exposure for the brand and store.

The Comment That Got Me Marriage Proposals

In August, I made a comment on one of my favorite Facebook fan page’s photos: Humans of New York. I not only happened to be one of the very first commenters (a lucky feat, since the page has over 10 million fans), but one of the top commenters as well. I made a comment about moving to Spain for the summer (the topic was related to the photo shared by HONY) and my Facebook account started blowing up.

The comment itself received hundreds of likes, nearly 100 comments, and just as many replies to comments. I received over 45 friend requests from around the world, and even more private messages than that. In fact, I got 3 or 4 marriage proposals, lots of guys telling me I was hot or had a nice smile, and others asking if we could be Internet friends.

I did not accept any friend requests or reply to any private messages. Needless to say, I was floored by the response. My comment didn’t go viral like Alex from Target’s tweeted picture, but I certainly experienced my 5 minutes of Internet fame and wondered what it would be like to go viral.

How To Go Viral

SingleGrain.comhas a great infographic that explains how you can create posts that will go viral. Of course, it doesn’t guarantee that following such methods will automatically make you go viral, but it definitely has some sound structure:

Going Viral by SingleGrain

This infographic is from just two years ago. And though its explanation of going viral is still very valid, 2014 has brought a wave of unexpected subjects going viral. (I would personally add Twitter to the mix of top sites to help your post go viral.) It’s all in the power of sharing. All it takes is a share here, and a share there, and if you believe in the 6 degrees of separation theory, then that’s how it goes viral. I mean, this whole Alex from Target thing is trending over voting, and that’s saying something.

Why Things Go Viral

Why do we get excited over these trivial subjects versus important issues? Personally, I believe that we are constantly in search of escape. We are human beings, we are frail, we are shallow at times, and we want to be entertained. We want to make someone else the spectacle so that our lives can have a moment of taking the focus off ourselves and our problems. This is not the case or blanket answer/cause for everything and everyone, but it definitely plays a major role.

It’s like that saying: Any publicity is good publicity. Before, that mentality used to apply to only select individuals. But nowadays, in the social media world, it could possibly apply to YOU.

As an author, I would love to go viral. To have that one blog post that transcends the ages and solves world hunger, homelessness, poverty, and bigotry. I’d love for people to buy my books and tell me I’m the sh*t. I want my Twitter following to blowup over night. I mean, I am nearing 7k, and that’s from like 2 years of hard work, building my following organically. But the chances of all that happening just with one book, or one tweet, or one pin on Pinterest are slim to none.

Or are they?

15 Minutes Of Fame

Let’s think for a moment: Alex from Target is going to have his spot in the limelight, just like I had my HONY comment celebrity moment for a day. Yes, it’s possible that Alex may have some amazing hidden talent and he’ll find an agent and continue his fame. But honestly, I think this Twitter debut, once it’s died down, may be the only time in his life where he’ll be Internet famous. It’ll be some cool story he can tell his grandkids one day. And by that time, they’ll probably be asking: What the hell is Twitter?

The Chances Of Becoming Famous

If you study the greats–be they musicians, artists, writers, professional athletes, whatever–their common thread is that the whole overnight success thing took years. It’s very, very rare to become famous in an instant. In fact, you can watch this fun video from BuzzFeed that shares some stats on the chances of becoming famous:

Is Overnight Fame Lasting?

Thanks to social media, some people’s chances of becoming famous, even for a moment, have gone way up. But overall, to achieve lasting fame–or better yet–to have a lasting, positive impact on society, it’s going to take some time. Those who put in the time, those who are consistent, are those who will be successful in their endeavors. In reality, the true overnight success thing is the result of years of hard work and consistency.

“It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It’s what we do consistently.” ― Anthony Robbins

“Perfection of effort is not required, by the way. It is the consistency of attempting to work these tools that brings the progress. It’s like anything else. If I want to tone muscle, lifting a ten-pound weight a few times every day will move me toward my goal much quicker than hoisting a fifty-pound barbell once a week. Yes, it really is true: ‘Slow and steady wins the race.’ Just try a little, every day. You’ll see.” ― Holly Mosier

Now What?

Well… the best conclusion I have come to regarding all this is more realistic than ignorantly optimistic. If your aim is to have a career in which you become well-known through your work, etc., then consistency and commitment are the answers for you. That’s it; that’s the “magical formula” and it’s one of the hardest things one could ever do.

However, if that is not your aim, then just take a page from the handbook of Alex from Target: be reasonably attractive, work at Target, get some chick to take your picture and tweet it, then you can start trending on the Internet.

What do you think? Are you the next Alex from Target or are you thinking more long term?Leave a comment!

It’s Friday! Awesome! Today, let’s look at networking on Facebook. There are many things that annoy me about Facebook (thank goodness for the unfollow feature), but there are some specific networking faux pas that irk me the most. Let me break it down for you:

-Friending is one thing; networking is another. Networking still involves building a relationship, just like friending does. However, with networking, it’s not pure sales–at least, not right away. In networking, making the connection first is important. If someone doesn’t know you yet, why would they want to buy your stuff? Gimmicks of days past just don’t work anymore. Consumers want to know you first before they invest in your product.

2. And if someone does accept your friend request for the purpose of marketing: Posting your sales pitch to someone’s Facebook timeline. NO!

-This actually has happened to me before. Not often, but it does happen. I accepted a friend request from a fellow writer, in order to connect, and he posted his book stuff on my timeline as soon as I confirmed the request! What did I do? I hid the post right away and unfollowed him (but still kept the connection).An action like that is like going on a blind date and then proposing at the end. Don’t. Do. It.

-Remember Mr. Real Estate from my “You’re Doing it Wrong: Potential Clients/Leads” post?He was on my “no-no” list with his methods of reaching out to potential leads–namely, my sister. After my sister unsubscribed to his newsletters, he not only reached out to her via e-mail, but ALSO sent her a DM–same message–on Facebook! Do not do that! It’s rude, it’s desperate, and it’s annoying.

So, what is it okay to do?

1. It’s okay, within reason, to reach out on a fan page.

-If you have something relevant to a fan page, go ahead and reach out. Sometimes, I receive messages on my fan page, asking for a reciprocal like. And you know what? If the message is nice, I usually return the favor. We’re all trying to build our networks, and if someone is supporting me, I’m happy to help.

2. It’s okay to reach out in promo groups.

-Promo groups on Facebook are AWESOME. I am part of some great communities on FB, and the members are extremely supportive of one another. When you reach out or post a promotion, just make sure you are following the rules of each group. Some groups don’t care for self-promotion and others are cool with it. And, I’ll reiterate: READ THE GROUP RULES before proceeding with your promo campaign.

In Summary

Use common sense while networking on Facebook, and if you’re not sure, ask a friend (or e-mail me). Networking with others should be fun, helpful, and courteous. Don’t make yourself look like a social media ogre. It’s just not pretty.Done the right way, you’ll generate leads and build some important relationships for furthering your career.

Do you have any pet peeves when it comes to Facebook networking? Leave a comment!

When I joined Twitter in 2009, I didn’t understand how to navigate it until I attended a Twitter webinar in 2012. By learning some tips and tricks, I was able to grow my following and begin to utilize Twitter as a valuable marketing and brand-building tool. There is incredible power to be harnessed through Twitter if you know what to do and what not to do. Let’s break things down.

1. Having a confusing Twitter bio.

Have you seen Twitter bios that are just plain confusing, especially the ones that make the handle’s owner seem like Superman? For example: Coffee aficionado, French fry king, innovator, master of sales, parachuter, and world peace wisher. I totally made that up, but I’ve seen many a Twitter bio looking like that. If it’s a personal handle, then do what you want. But if you’re trying to build a brand, sell a product, or increase your platform, your bio should be clear.

Notice I used #s so people looking for a writer, editor, or YA Fiction can easily find me in a search. I also included a URL shortlink to my Amazon Author Profile, so that people can click on it. My bio says what I do and what I’m about, giving people a pretty good idea of what they can expect if they follow me. If you have a website or blog, make sure you put the URL!

2. Tweeting a sales pitch at someone who does/doesn’t follow you.

Since I’ve grown my following on Twitter, this happens more often: Someone will tweet to me to either follow them back (they’ve followed me but I have yet to follow them) OR I follow someone and almost immediately, they tweet me their book, product…whatever. Talk about a turn off!

Engage with your audience first, before you try to sell them something. Tweeting a sales pitch to all your followers is okay; tweeting directly (unless warranted) is not okay.

3. Wearing out the same tweets.

I started using tweet automation this year and have come to love it. I’ve seen it used badly, and I’ve also seen it work really well. When tweets and URLs are varied, appropriate hashtags are used, and the content is interesting–that’s when automation is golden. When it’s the same tweet over and over again, day in and day out, it becomes spam-like and your followers will wonder if you have ANY interesting content.

If you’re going to use an automator, plan out your tweet content, make sure you shorten your URLs, and keep it interesting. There’s nothing more annoying than seeing the same “inspirational” quote over and over again. And don’t forget to actually interact with your followers (lists are very helpful).

Hopefully you’ve found these examples helpful as you navigate the Twitterverse. Are there other Twitter “no-nos” that bother you? Feel free to share by leaving a comment.